Intellectual Virtues and Scientific Endeavor: A Reflection on the Commitments Inherent in Generating and Possessing Knowledge

Abstract

In this essay, I reflect on the implications of intellectual virtues in scientific endeavor. To this end, I first offer a depiction of scientific endeavor by resorting to the notion of academic attitude, which involves aspects concerning the generation and possession of knowledge. Although there are differences between these activities, they have in common the engagement of diverse intellectual agents (scientists). In this sense, I analyze how intellectual virtues are linked to 1) scientific research tasks, such as theory appraisal, and 2) those tasks of vigilance and intervention in the uses of scientific knowledge. I conclude that intellectual virtues play a leading role in achieving higher quality scientific research and adequate foresight on the uses and impacts of scientific findings. In this order of ideas, I propose an agenda for further inquiries on these matters, highlighting the relevance of reflecting and empirically researching the relationship between intellectual virtues and science, as well as cultivating intellectual virtues in various stages of scientific training.

Deficient epistemic virtues and prevalence of epistemic vices as precursors to transgressions in research misconduct

“…Paternotte and Ivanova noted that epistemic virtues have a positive effect on science because they accelerate successful convergence amongst scientists in theory choice situations (Paternotte and Ivanova, 2017). Mendoza-De Los Santos has analyzed how intellectual virtues are linked to scientific research tasks and those of vigilance and intervention in the uses of scientific knowledge, and concluded that intellectual virtues are key to achieving higher quality scientific research and adequate foresight on the uses and impacts of scientific findings (Mendoza-De Los Santos, 2023). The field of psychological and behavioral sciences has a credibility crisis as many celebrated or key findings cannot not subsequently be replicated (Malich and Munafò, 2022; Open Science Collaboration, 2015).…”

“…Epistemic vices include negative intellectual traits such as gullibility, dogmatism, prejudice, closed-mindedness, negligence, indifference to truth, and rigidity (Cassam, 2016, 2019; Meyer et al, 2021a, b). The importance of intellectual or epistemic virtues (Turri et al, 2018) in scientific research appears intuitively clear, and has been the subject of several recent analyses (Mendoza-De Los Santos, 2023; Paternotte and Ivanova, 2017; Uygun-Tunç and Pritchard, 2022).…”

Inteligencia artificial: algunas deliberaciones psicosociales

“…Dicho en un argot filosófico de gran vigencia, se trata de promover un uso virtuoso de la tecnología en general, y de la IA en particular, especialmente en un panorama emergente donde hay relativamente poco consenso sobre los lineamientos que han de guiar su uso. El vínculo entre la virtud y la tecnología en sus diversas dimensiones, conviene subrayar, es una preocupación cada vez más común en los estudios filosóficos y sociales sobre la ciencia y la tecnología (Mejlgaard et al, 2019;Mendoza-De Los Santos, 2023;Ratti y Stapleford, 2021;Vallor, 2016). En este punto, la psicología puede jugar un rol medular, realizando aportaciones de gran valor en la configuración de programas formativos en el uso de tecnología, por ejemplo, promoviendo la adopción de estrategias metacognitivas para el ejercicio reflexivo de herramientas como ChatGPT (Dai et al, 2023).…”